Remote Year Trip Policies (Version 1.8)
Effective Date: April 3rd,, 2024
These Trip Policies contain important information about our rules and guidelines for your participation in a Remote Year Trip and Remote Year Membership (as defined in the Remote Year Participant Terms and Conditions), and our rules and guidelines regarding travel, accommodation, visitors, guests, etc. Under the Remote Year Participant Terms and Conditions, which constitute a binding contract between you (“you, “your” or “Participant”) and Remote Year, you are also agreeing to these policies.
1. Accessibility Requirements Remote Year recognizes that some Participants may have physical and/or mental accessibility needs or impairments. As such, Remote Year will endeavor to provide reasonable accommodations unless doing so causes a direct threat to these individuals or others, violates local laws, and/or if the accommodation creates an undue hardship to Remote Year. For more information about this section or to discuss or request an accommodation, please reach out to your RY Advisor, Nation Support Team or Community Leader.
2. Travel Policies
2.1 Entry and Exit from RY Locations
2.1.1 Flights to the start of a Trip or Service, and flights at the end of a Trip or Service, are not included or covered by Remote Year, For example, for a 4-month or 12-month long Trip, you are responsible for your flights to the starting location of month 1, and flights and transportation to take you to your next destination at the end of the 4-month or 12-month Trip. Remote Year includes the travel and transportation for the months in between, when on the 4-month or 12-month Trip. Flights and transportation are not included if you purchase consecutive separate Trips.
2.1.2 Neither Remote Year, nor its designated Travel Team members or affiliates, shall be liable for any cancellation penalty charged by an air carrier or other transportation provider, including but not limited to, any air carrier's cancellation penalty related to the purchase of a non-refundable ticket to or from the location a Participant is in prior to joining the Trip or the location a Participant is going to after leaving the Trip.
2.2 Travel Alterations and Changes
If you are on a Remote Year 4-month or 12-month Trip that has included flights, there are 2 ways you can potentially alter or change your travel:
2.2.1 Travel Credit: If you decide to not take the included Remote Year organized group flight you may be able to select the option to have a credit applied to a future invoice. This credit is a dollar amount subtracted from the invoice you will receive right before the stated transition. This credit amount, if any, will vary by transition. The credit amount is based on multiple factors affecting the booking costs. Group flight bookings are a bit complicated - that’s why we have a travel team who handle the contracts. Not every ticket costs the same amount, has the same type of payment terms, or the same amount of flexibility. So, when we determine credit amounts, we try to include all relevant factors to end at a fair amount for all Participants.
2.2.2 Transition Trip: This is a flight to a new destination in between two Remote Year locations over Transition Weekend. These are ticketed by the Remote Year travel team. Availability, destinations, prices, dates and flight times will vary.
2.2.3 Other Alterations and Changes info: If you select the Credit option through the Marketplace, the credit will be issued/reflected on the last invoice you receive before the flight for which you selected the Credit. (For example, if you’ve selected the credit instead of taking the group flight on May 25th, you will see that credit deducted from the invoice you receive in May.)
Full Trip Payment or if your invoice is less than the Credit amount: If you have paid for your Remote Year Trip in full, or if the invoice you receive is less than the Credit, you will receive your Credit as a refund back to the credit card used for your original down payment. If you prefer to use a different method of refund, please contact payments@remoteyear.com before the refund is processed.
If you decide to leave your Remote Year Trip all future Remote Year Credits, and planned flights we may have booked for you will be canceled. If possible, you may have the opportunity to purchase your changed flights from Remote Year for use after leaving your Trip but you need to let us know as far in advance as possible.
No changes can be made by Remote Year to your group travel bookings after the given deadline has passed
If you are not traveling with your Trip on the standard group flight, you are responsible for your own ground transportation to and from the airport and/or bus station.
If you book alternate travel through a different source, or if you do not take part in Remote Year’s travel weekend, you are not eligible to receive any type of compensation except for possibly the credit that is offered through the Transition Options process.
If you decide to not travel to a scheduled location on the standard group flight, in addition you must send your Community Leader your departure and return information at least 10 days in advance of travel dates to ensure a smooth arrival when you rejoin your Trip.
If you decide to leave your Remote Year Trip all future Remote Year credit, and planned flights we may have booked for you will be canceled. If possible, you may have the opportunity to purchase your planned flights from Remote Year for use after leaving your Trip, but you need to let us know as far in advance as possible.
Only one Transition Option can be selected per Transition. Therefore you cannot select to receive a credit and have the Travel Team book you on the group flight.
Transition Options are final once confirmed via the Marketplace. The Travel team will not be able to book you back on the group flight if you select one of the other Transition Options.
Remote Year will not provide individual assistance to book flights outside of the Remote Year Transition Options.
2.3 Important Airline Policies
2.3.1 If the included Group Flight is not direct, and you only wish to travel for part of the route , please check with the Travel Team at least 14 days in advance of the flight to ensure this is possible In most instances, the airline may automatically cancel your seat / ticket for the whole route, if the first flight not taken. Additionally, some airlines do not allow you to collect your baggage midway through a multi-leg itinerary.
2.3.2 Many airlines purposely overbook flights, as they expect cancellations. Unfortunately there is no way to protect against a situation where a Remote Year planned flight is overbooked and the airline chooses to “bump” people in a Remote Year Trip. In this unlikely scenario, Remote Year will organise a plan B.
2.3.3 Many Airlines and/or airports require proof of exit information from the country to which you are traveling. If you’re traveling with your Trip this information is included in your Travel Day email. If you are not exiting the country with the Trip on the normal transition weekend, please ensure you have your exit information with you.
2.4 Luggage Policies
2.4.1 On Remote year planned flights, Remote Year can guarantee that you’ll be able to bring the following at no extra cost: one piece of checked luggage up to 20 kg (44 lbs) and 62 inches, as well as one piece of hand luggage up to 5kgs (11 lbs). (We wish we could guarantee more, but weight allowances for hand luggage and checked luggage vary greatly depending on the airline.) You are responsible for adhering to these limits. Should your luggage be over the limit allowed, you will be responsible for managing the weight of your luggage and paying any additional fees at the airports. Remote Year will not be responsible in case of lost or stolen luggage, but our team will do our best to work with you to get it back.
2.4.2 If you can not carry it, do not pack it! Our staff are helpful but Remote Year staff are not expected to transport baggage for you under any circumstances.
2.4.3 If you are not planning to travel with the Trip on travel day please take your baggage with you! Remote Year staff and Remote Year Participants are not able to transport baggage on your behalf. Remote Year accounts for the number of Remotes traveling with each Trip to determine how much space is needed (both for passengers and baggage). In other words, if you are not joining your Trip on travel day, don't ask one of your friends in your Trip to take your suitcase, there may not be room for it!
2.4.4 Some Remotes may look to bring additional oversized luggage, such as bikes or surfboards. For any included ground transportation, while we will try to accommodate such luggage, this is not a guarantee. Any additional costs incurred to accommodate the luggage will be made clear to the Participant in advance, for them to accept or choose to make their own arrangements. For included Remote Year group / transition flights, the Participant will be responsible for all additional charges by the airline carrier. Because of the number of airlines used, Remote Year cannot guarantee in advance that any oversize luggage will be accepted by the airline, and so all items are at the Participant’s risk.
3. Visitors
3.1 For all Trips,if visitors are allowed in Remote Year accommodations will vary depending on the following factors: (A) location; (B) accommodation; and (C) the preferences of your housemates(s) (D) your community guidelines (E) landlord / vendor permission. Your accommodations in each city will be different, as such, the space available for visitors will vary. It is your and your housemate(s)’ responsibility to determine if your living space is sufficient for visitors. While we always do our best to permit visitors, in some of our cities our vendor may not allow them. Please check with your Community Leader or City Team (as well as any housemates) before you confirm any guests!
3.2 When visitors can be accommodated, for 4 and 12 month Trips, visitors can stay up to 10 nights, each month in Remote Year accommodations.. The first 5 visitor nights each month will come at no cost. Any subsequent nights cost will start at $15 USD per night but will vary if we are charged more by our vendor. We will apply this amount to your bill for the following month or send you a link to the RY Marketplace to purchase. When visitors can be accommodated, for 1-month trips, visitors can only stay up to 5 nights total. This is limited to 5 total visitor nights for 1-month trips to ensure the integrity of your community and the group overall due to the limited duration of the Trip. 5 total visitor nights is still over 20% of the total duration of the RY 1-month Trip.
3.3 Visitor Additional Terms
When Remote Year is providing accommodations, if you have 2 visitors staying with you for a night, this counts as 2 visitor nights and so on.
When Remote Year is providing accommodations, Visitors must be reported to your Community Leader prior to their arrival. Not reporting visitors may result in your removal from your accommodations. In this case, Remote Year will not cover the cost of your accommodations for the remainder of the month.
When Remote Year is providing accommodations, the fees and time constraints described above apply to visitors staying overnight in your Remote Year accommodations. Fees and time constraints do not apply to visitors obtaining their own accommodations.
Remote Year, Landlords / Vendors will not provide any additional accommodation supplies for visitors, such as additional beds, bedding, keys, or towels.
Remote Year nor Landlords / Vendors are responsible for helping Visitors check-in.
Visitors may be able to attend some Remote Year events, but this is not a guarantee. If permitted, there may be a charge, depending on the event in question. Please speak to your Community Leader to find out which will apply. Visitor workspace fees and availability will vary, and should be coordinated with Community Leaders.
You alone are responsible for your visitors! Remote Year assumes no responsibility or liability for your visitors and Remote Year assumes no responsibility or liability for the actions and/or behaviors of your visitors.
Should your visitors attend any Remote Year events, stay in Remote Year accommodations, or work in a Remote Year workspace, they are expected to behave in accordance with the Remote Year Code of Conduct. If your visitors act counter to Remote Year’s values or Code of Conduct, Remote Year reserves the right to ask them to leave and/or to deny them access to Remote Year accommodations, workspaces, and events.
If your visitors are not Remote Year Members you MUST be present with them when they are in/at Remote Year accommodations, Remote Year workspaces, and Remote Year events. (E.g. This means that your friend from home CANNOT stay in your room while you are away from the accommodation, for any reason.)
Visitors that will be staying in Remote Year accommodations must be 18 years of age or older. This includes family members, and when staying in private Remote Year accommodation..
Any Remote Year Member, past or present Remote Year Participant, who is not in good standing standing (e.g. was removed from a Trip, found in violation of the Code of Conduct, or has an outstanding balance with Remote Year), is NOT able to stay in any Remote Year accommodations as a visitor.
Anyone (Member or not) who is found to be abusing the Remote Year platform by shadowing or traveling with a community without paying for Remote Year Services will be banned from all future Remote Year experiences and in some instances, Remote Year membership canceled. .
The Visitor Policy and the Opt Out Policy may not be used in conjunction to avoid payment. Any Participantwho is opted out may only stay as a visitor for a maximum of 10 nights every fourth month in any Remote Year accommodation. (The first 5 nights are free and the second 5 nights are $15+/night). Particpantswho have ‘opted out’ of a Trip may NOT bounce around apartments to refresh guest night counts or free night counts. In the case that an opted out Particiapantdoes not properly declare their stay as a guest Remote Year may permanently void their right to stay as a guest in Remote Year accommodation. Further, if you host a Participant who has opted out for the month without proper declaration you will be accountable for any fees charged by our vendors.
4. Damages and Incidental Policies
4.1 At the end of each Trip and or month, Remote Year will do an inventory of each property. If anything is broken or lost from your property or the coworking space, the Participant responsible will have to pay for lost items and/or damages. If the person responsible is not identified, the group will have to share the bill (for housing, housemates will be responsible and for coworking, the entire group).
4.2 All costs will be charged to you by Remote Year on your next billing cycle or in a separate invoice. If you would like to dispute any damage or lost item charges, you must do so within 7 days. For any lost or broken items, you will be charged the cost of repair/replacement and labor, which we will source from a local vendor and/or landlord.
4.3 Please remember that in most cases you are living in other people’s homes that they are renting out to you. As such, you are expected to treat their property with care and respect. If you are removed from your accommodation due to disrespecting the property or policies (e.g. excessive noise/partying), you will be responsible for obtaining your own accommodation at your own cost. You may also be charged a fee if upon checkout you do not follow the checkout procedures that are given to you in each location.
5. Workspace Policies
5.1 General Workplace Policies. Whether it’s a Remote Year run coworking space or a third-party coworking space where Remote Year rents seats for Participants, you’re expected to behave responsibly, respectfully, professionally, and in accordance with Remote Year’s Code of Conduct. Failure to do so may result in a loss of coworking space access privileges, or potentially removal from your Remote Year Trip. Please, always remember to: Be a good guest! Please follow the “house rules” at all coworking spaces. Keep an eye out! You are responsible for your own belongings. Common sense dictates that you should not leave valuables unattended. Remote Year is not responsible for items lost in or stolen from coworking spaces (not that we’ve known that to happen though!) Please also note that some workspaces that Remote Year uses may be pet friendly. If this is something that is going to cause a problem for you, please let us know before arriving for the month / Trip.. While we cannot stop pets from being in shared/common areas, where practicable we’ll do everything we can to try to facilitate a comfortable experience for you. Lastly, it’s important to note that if you choose not to use the Remote Year workspace for any reason while on a Trip, no refund or credit will be due, as this is a prepaid facility within the Remote Year package.
5.2 Mail and Packages. Remote Year will do its best to ensure you receive any packages sent to you while on the Trip, but Remote Year is not responsible for any lost or unclaimed packages. If a package arrives in a city after your departure, you are financially responsible for any cost associated with forwarding the package. Please note that Remote Year will not pay fees associated with package deliveries and Remote Year will not facilitate the delivery of and will not accept responsibility or liability for any packages with illegal/illicit contents.
6. Tech and Networking Policies
6.1 Remote Year may provide you with access to RY Nation Hub, Google Drive, Remote Year WhatsApp groups, various internet and wifi networks, hotspots, and other technology platforms (collectively “Remote Year Tech” or “Remote Year Services”). You may only use Remote Year Tech for legally allowed purposes. Remote Year assumes no liability for illegal uses of Remote Year Tech. Remote Year reserves the right to take action against those who misuse Remote Year Tech, including temporarily or permanently limiting their access to Remote Year Tech (by imposing strict permissions and bandwidth caps, or other methods), removing their access to Remote Year Tech completely, potentially removing them from a Remote Year Trip, and/or reporting them to the relevant authorities. To be absolutely clear, you are expected NOT to use Remote Year Tech for illegal purposes. Additionally, you are expected NOT to use Remote Year Tech in any of the ways described below, which would be considered “misuse”. Examples of misuse include, but are not limited to:
Any use that would violate Remote Year’s Code of Conduct or Terms and Conditions
Any use that would violate the Terms of Service for the relevant type of Remote Year Tech (Google Drive Terms of Service can be found here and Mighty Networks’ Terms of Use found here, WhatsApp Privacy Policy here)
Collecting and/or harvesting emails or any personal information of Particpants, Remote Year Staff, or any other users
High bandwidth operations, (e.g. large file transfers and peer-to-peer media sharing)
Uses involving obscene or indecent speech or materials, or defamatory, harassing, abusive, or threatening material or language
Uses involving obscene or indecent speech or materials, or defamatory, harassing, abusive, or threatening material or language
Forging or misrepresenting (masking) the originator of a message
Hacking, distribution of Internet viruses, Trojan horses, pinging, flooding, mail-bombing, denial of service attacks or other destructive activities. Also, activities that disrupt the use of or interfere with the ability of others to effectively use any connected network, service, or equipment
Seeking information on passwords or data belonging to another user
Sending of unsolicited bulk and/or commercial messages over Remote Year Tech or using Remote Year Tech for activities that invade another's privacy
Engaging in any activity that infringes or misappropriate the intellectual property rights of others, including patents, copyrights, trademarks, service marks, trade secrets, or any other proprietary right of any third party
Accessing illegally or without authorization computers, accounts, equipment or networks belonging to another party, or attempting to penetrate/circumvent security measures of another system. Including, but not limited to, port scans, stealth scans, or other information gathering activity
The transfer of technology, software, or other materials in violation of applicable export laws and regulations
Using the Remote Year Tech in violation of applicable law and regulation, including, but not limited to, advertising, transmitting, or otherwise making available ponzi schemes, pyramid schemes, fraudulently charging credit cards, pirating software, or making fraudulent offers to sell or buy products, items, or services
Distribution of any pornographic materials to or of minors.
Note that, we may review content to determine whether it is illegal or violates our policies, and we may remove or refuse to display content that we reasonably believe violates our policies or the law. But that does not necessarily mean that we review content, so please don’t assume that we do.
7. COVID-19
7.1 COVID-19 Vaccination Policy
For all Trips which start on or after January 1, 2023, Remote Year members and Trip Participants, or guests thereof, are not required to be vaccinated against COVID-19.
At all times Participants are responsible for understanding and adhering to any local entry requirements and local regulations in relation to COVID-19, and responsible for any costs in relation to tests, quarantining, or any other related expense.
Full details see here: https://www.remoteyear.com/covid-policy
7.2 COVID Policy & FAQS
For our full COVID Policy and list of FAQs please see here.
8. Miscellaneous
8.1 Pets In some locations, namely where we have confirmed that Selina will be the accommodation provider, we may be able to permit pets to be on Trip with their owner. Any additional costs charged in relation to bringing pets will be payable by the Participant direct to the Accommodation Provider. Remote Year is not responsible for any additional charges, or services in relation to the charges. Nor can Remote Year take any responsibility for the accomdoation’s suitability for pets. The Participants will be responsible for upholding all regulations laid out by the Accommodation provider.
For the vast majority of our Trips, we are not able to support pets on Trips currently, but we are going to do our best to continue exploring this option and will update you in the future if it becomes viable.
8.2 Age Persons below the age of 21 are not eligible to participate in a Remote Year Trip or Remote Year Membership.
8.3 Families and Children As long as your family are all above 21 in age, we would love to have you! Unfortunately we are not currently accepting anyone under the age of 21.
8.4 Safety We always work with our safety and security partner, International SOS, to determine the best destinations for each of our Trips with your safety in mind. If you join a Trip, you will receive free personal access to their app and site.
8.5 Drugs, Alcohol and Illicit Substances Remote Year does not tolerate use of illegal drugs or activity on any Trip. All Participants are expected to abide by the laws in each country visited. If at any point during the Trip you perform or engage in any illegal activity, Remote Year is not responsible for legal ramifications of that action, and you may be removed from the Trip at your own cost, and without refund to you. Remote Year has no responsibility or obligation to notify Participants of all applicable local laws.
8.6 Visas. Remote Year Participants are responsible for obtaining any documents required for their participation in Remote Year Services, such as a valid passport, all visas, vaccination certificates, and any other documents. Failure to obtain documents does not negate the Terms and Conditions, and any extra costs incurred for rerouting due to travel without the necessary documents will be the Participant’s responsibility. Remote Year is not a legal advisor or a professional advisor and it does not provide guidance on visa processes
8.7 Travel Insurance. You must have adequate travel insurance in order to participate in a Remote Year Trip or Service. Remote Year may provide information about insurance options and references to trusted insurance partners during onboarding, however, you alone are responsible for securing said insurance and Remote Year may require you to present proof of said insurance.
In the event of any lost or stolen items during a RY Trip, Remote Year will work with the participant to obtain any information needed for a travel insurance claim. Remote Year however will not be financially responsible for any lost or stolen items.
8.8 Job requirement. Being employed is not a requirement to be able to participate in a Remote Year Trip, however, the vast majority of Remote Year Participants are working in some capacity.
8.9 Shared Accommodations.
8.9.1 By participating in a Trip or Service, when Remote Year is providing accommodation, unless living in ‘Private Accomodation’ each Participant is agreeing to share their accommodation with other Participants. In doing so, each Participant acknowledges to share the accommodation respectfully. Respect extends to, and not limited to: working patterns, sleeping patterns, cultural differences, personal boundaries, sexual orientation, gender identity. As per Remote Year Code of Conduct, no discrimination or harassment will be tolerated at any time.
8.9.2 Remote Year will assign housemates, whenever practicable, based on living preferences provided by each Participant. However, Remote Year is not responsible for assigning bedrooms within the accommodation, nor will act on any feedback that a Participant is not content with the bedroom assigned by another housemate(s) in comparison to the other bedroom(s).
8.9.3 By agreeing to share accommodation provided by Remote Year, as part of a Trip or other Service, each Participant acknowledges and accepts the accompanying increased risk of contracting or passing an illness from other Participants.
8.9.4 In the event that a housemate should become ill when living in accommodation shared with other Remote Year Participants, each housemate agrees to be respectful by trying to prevent the spread of the illness.
8.9.5 Remote Year will not provide additional accommodation for any Participant, or make alternative accommodation arrangements, should any Participant become ill at any time.
9. Our Housing Promise
Remote Year will never knowingly or intentionally put a Participant in accommodations we believe are “unlivable”. However, sometimes situations arise that are out of our control. If any of the issues listed below arise, please report them immediately by submitting a ‘support ticket’ (Participants will be shown how to do this at the start of each Trip). If the issue is not resolved within 48 hours of your report, and if the issue was not the direct or proximate result of a Remote’s actions, Remote Year will move you to a new accommodation until the problem has been fixed. The following instances are included in and examples of this policy:
No warm water
Electricity or power outage: Intermittent power outage resulting in 48 hours of total lost power. Note: the outage must be specific to the building or the unit in order to qualify.
No internet connectivity: Note: Remote Year may provide you with a SIM card or hotspot instead of moving you for internet connectivity issues.
Clean room and/or bedding
Air conditioning or heat failure in extreme climates. Extreme Climates are defined as follows: Warm Weather: If the average temperature* in a city during the month that we are there is greater than 75 F (24 C), you will have air conditioning in your accommodation. Cold Weather: If the average temperature* in a city during the month that we are operating is less than 55 F (13 C), you will have a heater in your accommodation. *For the purposes of our extreme climates policy, average temperature is based on historical data. Unfortunately we may be unable to install air conditioning during heatwaves and/or heating during record breaking lows.